What is the best way to experience another country? Trying out their best dishes. These are the Top 9 Must Try Filipino Foods. Providing an insight to the Filipino palate.
In the Philippines, there are variety dishes with unique flavors, starting from sweet to salty foods and even the weirdest ones. Here are some Filipino dishes that you must try whilst in the Philippines.
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Adobo
Adobo comes in different forms, either pork, chicken, beef or fish. Among all, Chicken adobo seems to be the highlight. This is a famous food in the Philippines that everybody loves. The word adobo comes from a Spanish word that means marinate. The meat is marinated in soy sauce and vinegar, and there are also other ingredients that people use depending on their preference. As for the taste, it is basically sour and a bit salty. Others prefer to put calamansi (local version of lime) juice to add more flavor, and a little sugar for a hint of sweetness.
Balut
Ok, probably one of the strangest for outsiders but Balut is basically a duck embryo. This egg is steamed in the middle of having it fertilized. You can eat this with vinegar or salt. This is probably one of the strangest foods, but people seem to love it in the Philippines.
Kare Kare
This is made from oxtail and ox stripes that are stewed with vegetables. The main ingredient is peanut butter that makes a very distinctive taste. Sometimes it is served with shrimp sauce or bagoong and sometimes with chili and calamansi juice.
Kinilaw
Kinilaw is a raw fish salad that is served with calamansi juice and vinegar. The word “kilaw” in kinilaw originally means “eaten fresh”. Other than that, it is made with garlic, onion, pepper, chili, and ginger to add more flavor.
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Sinigang
Every Filipino citizen knows this dish. It is, in fact, one of the best dishes in the Philippines. It comes with a meat-based soup with vegetables. The type of meat used is pork, and the main ingredient on how to make this soup different is the tamarind or what they call “sampalok.” Other ingredients such as tomatoes and calamansi will be based on the person cooking it. In different areas, they have a different procedure on how they cook it, even using shrimp, fish, chicken, or beef for their version.
Paksiw Lechon
The word Lechon comes from the Spanish word ‘suckling pig.’ The pig is roasted as a whole for hours. This dish is typically cooked during special gatherings or occasions. It is originally made in Cebu. The Paksiw Lechon is made from the leftovers of the actual Lechon and stewed with vinegar and other spices.
Tapsilog
Tapsilog comes from three words, Tapa, sinangag, and Itlog. Tapa means cured beef, sinangag means fried rice, and itlog means egg. This dish is mainly eaten for breakfast. Other than tapsilog, other dishes are suffixed with –silog and basically partnered with fried rice like corned beef, hotdogs, ham, and more. They are worth a try.
Halo Halo
This is the most famous dessert in the Philippines. The word Halo Halo means “mixing together”. It is mainly served in a tall glass with evaporated milk and ice shavings with small chunks of goodies inside
Buko
Buko means young coconut. The Philippines is the 2nd largest producer of coconuts in the world. It comes with a very flavorful flesh fruit and a refreshing drink all at once. It is very healthy and comes with different health benefits.
A big thank you to Lola’s Kitchen Bangkok and Grass Collantes for the pictures
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